What did the Wright brothers cook from their extremely well-organized pantry?

The Wright brothers spent months, from late August to December of 1901, 1902, and 1903, on the beaches of Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hills experimenting and working on flight.  We all know the Wright brothers launched and flew the first powered airplane.  Their first powered flight was on December 17, 1903 after years of tinkering and experiments.

We have a picture of their pantry but it’s hard to make out any specific canned food labels.  It’s very clear that the pantry was organized and well-stocked. These boys knew their way around a muffin pan and were serious when it came to food.

1902 Orville Wright diary entry describing the beach camp kitchen: “Friday August 29. Spent day in arranging kitchen and driving 16 ft well. Building sunk about two feet each end. Took picture of interior of building at 10:00 AM.”

Letters home about food as well as flight progress

The brothers were on their own during the months they spent each year on the beach trying out their flying machine, and they often wrote letters  home to their family, from which we can glean some information about what they ate. Food shows up quite frequently in their letters.

“Our larder at present is pretty well supplied. We have on hand five dozen eggs, a whole side of bacon, two dozen lemons, two pounds of butter, six of lard; salt, sugar, potatoes, flour, and meal to last for several weeks, besides the stuff we brought from home. We get a quart a day of the best skimmed milk you ever saw–I mean skimmed the best–a perfect job, done by the cows themselves.”  Orville Wright in a letter, 9-7-1902.

Five dozen eggs, two dozen lemons, two pounds of butter, six of lard… all I can think of is baking.  Pies and biscuits, muffins and tarts. Two dozen lemons is a serious amount of lemons.  I don’t know that I’ve ever seen two dozen lemons in one spot outside of a grocery store. The brothers  must have been partial to lemons, maybe they made a lot of lemonade, or lemon muffins, but I think they liked lemon pie.  Sort of a pie in the sky idea, if you will.

Letters about Muffins and Biscuits

“If we only had some butter, and some lard instead of the cottonseed oil which we are using at present, and which has the effect of making the crust of our muffins resemble the shell of a terrapin in hardness, we would be living in the sixth story instead of the basement, speaking in W.H. Clay style.  I hope you will interpret correctly.” Excerpt from Wilbur Wright letter to his sister, 8-31-1902.

“I believe I started in to tell you what we eat.  Well, most of the time we eat hot biscuits and eggs and tomatoes: part of the time eggs and part of the time tomatoes. Just now we are out of gasoline and coffee.  Therefore no hot drinks or bread or crackers.  The order sent off Tuesday has been delayed by the winds.  Will is most starved. But he kept crying that when we were rolling in luxuries such as butter, bacon, cornbread and coffee. I think he will survive.” from Orville Wright in a letter dated 10-14-1900.

Reduced Rations and Blowouts

“We are living nearly the whole time on reduced rations. Once in a while we get a mess of fish and if our stuff comes about the same time from Elizabeth City–which stuff consists of canned tomatoes, peaches, condensed milk, flour, bacon and butter–we have a big blow out, or as the Africans would say a “big full.” But it only lasts a day.” Orville Wright in a letter dated 10-18-1900.

Doing the Dishes

“We have a method of cleaning dishes that has made the dish rag and the tea towel a thing of the past.” letter from Orville Wright 10-14-1900 (sadly the method isn’t detailed).

December 17, 1903 First Powered Flight

But what is for sure is that on December 17, 1903, they took to the air in a powered airplane for the first time. Orville sent a cable to his father about their first powered flight:

Would they have done it without that pantry?

I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t have been possible without their well-stocked pantry and whatever they cooked those months away from home on the beaches of North Carolina. If you have a Wright family recipe, please share it in the comments below, or send us an email.